Grace Notes

All right everyone. My husband has inspired me to blog once again. If he can start up again after not posting for almost two years, then certainly I can start up again after not posting since November. I have a good excuse. First, there was the holidays. Who has time to blog during that time of the year? Then in January I started a CNA class which met every day from 4:30 – 9:30pm. So, between work and class and trying to see my husband at some point in the day, there was no time to talk to you all. In case you are wondering, I am now a CNA, certified in feeding, CPR, and first aid. On April 14, I’ll take another test to become a CHHA (Certified Home Health Aid) which is a step above a CNA. Not that I necessarily wanted to do all of this, but it was do it or find another job. I chose having a job

In other news, our close group of people left West Side Baptist Church and started our own church Sovereign Grace Baptist Church. The Lord has really blessed us. The first week we met, it was just those of us from West Side, but now we have 30- 35 people regularly with new ones every week. And yes, for all my single female friends, we have about 6 military men each Sunday who are mostly single. Oklahoma is definitely the place for you! I’ll try to post an assortment of pictures soon from the past couple of months. Maybe a few church pictures will pop up for those of you who are especially interested.

I can’t believe that my last post was in August. Where does the time go? So much has happened I wouldn’t even know where to begin. Here’s a short synopsis: We moved into a rental home, grandpa and grandma Garard moved to Enid, Barb dyed her hair red, we went to the Texas State Fair, there’s a cat outside who thinks he belongs to us, oh, and I turned another year older. Yes, I am now 24 years old. It seems like just yesterday I was walking down the halls of school in my plaid uniform heading to Miss Heath’s class wondering if Mat Sperling will arrive on time or if we will have to send out a search party once again. Those were the days. Not that I would ever want to go back. Because now I am married to the most wonderful man who planned a surprise birthday trip for me this past weekend. He wouldn’t tell me where we were going and he only revealed one step at a time. We arrived in downtown Tulsa Friday afternoon and pulled up to the Crowne Plaza. I was shocked! They treated us like royalty the whole time (bottles of water, sleep cd’s, lavender pillow mist, eye masks). Well, we got up to our room, and Kurt announced that in 45 minutes we would be making our way down to the 2nd floor for messages and a Geisha bath(jacuzzi hot tub with water that falls from the ceiling). After that we went back to our rooms and Kurt had already planned on room service for dinner! The food was amazing. The next morning he took me to Jenks,OK. to a river walk shopping area and then to the quaint downtown area for antique shopping. It was the most relaxing birthday ever. We had a great time. Barb and Paul came down for my birthday this weekend and we spent Sunday with them. Guess what Barb got me for a birthday gift. Shoes! Those of you who know Barb won’t be surprised. I must say that she did a good job picking out shoes that fit my style. Hopefully in the next couple of days I’ll post some recent photos of life in Enid. And, hopefully I’ll do a better job of posting.

Yes, it’s true. Last Tuesday I allowed my chiropractor to insert needles all over my head, neck, and shoulders. Guess what, I loved it!
My neck pain has been getting worse these past few months, and my chiropractor says that it’s because my neck muscles are so tense that somehow my neck is getting jammed down. So I finally asked her if I could try something else and she suggested acupuncture. It didn’t hurt at all. I mean, the needles that were put in my head pinched a little, but skin on your head is sensitive anyway. After the needles were inserted, I laid face down for 15 minutes and then there were taken out. At the end of the session, I was so relaxed. I have to have 2 more sessions until she’ll start correcting the neck problem again. I would definately suggest acupuncture for anybody experiencing severe muscle pain. It made me feel so much better and I’m really looking forward to my next session. I just wish I would have had this done sooner.

Now that the wedding is over, time to get back to more important things, like my garden. I’ve been neglecting it for far too long. Thankfully, Kurt has been doing a lot of the watering for me. Weeding, however, is another story. The temperature has been over 100 degrees all week, and yesterday’s heat index was 111. The tomatoes will just have to learn how to live with the weeds. I’m not going to die weeding my garden. What I am most excited about right now are the 8 watermelons I have growing out back. That is if they survived Joe Boeke using them as stepping stones. Two have split open(not from Joe), but the rest are looking very yummy.
The other piece of important news is that grandma and grandpa Garard have sold their lake house in Iowa and are in the process of purchasing a 5 bedroom house here in Enid. The best part is that it has an in-ground pool with a diving board. Sounds like the perfect way to escape the heat!

Today, Mel Geiseman(maid of Honor), and Jane Cook(wedding coordinator), were picked up at Ok City airport by dad, Barb, Whitney and Kendi. The week has now officially started. Let the fun begin!

Last, last Sunday night(I’m a little slow at posting), the ladies at West Side Baptist held a wedding shower for Barb. We all had a good time and she received a lot of gifts from such a small group.

Today, Paul, Barb, Whitney, Kurt, and I went to OKC so Whitney could have some fun. For those of you who don’t know, Whitney, my cousin, is here for the month, but the poor thing has to sit at home all day while we all work. This past week I worked 44 hours and next week I work 48 hours, so I don’t have a lot of time to do fun things with her. So today, we took her out on the town. We first went to the OKC Bombing Memorial. It was 95 degrees out so we only stayed about 30 minutes, but that is a really nice memorial to go to. Then, we walked along the canal to Bricktown and ate at the Sonic there. It was a nice respite from the heat. Plus, they made my cherry limeade the way I like it, which doesn’t happen very often. I prefer Braums’ limeades…more limey.
Next, we hit Penn Square Mall, which is an awesome mall to go to. At some point, we lost Barb and Paul to a movie, so it was just Kurt, Whitney and I for the rest of the trip. I bought two pumpkin candle holders from Yankee Candle for just a dollar each! That was the buy of the day. Well, that was all I bought for the day I should say. That and a cinnamon pretzel to go with my Starbucks coffee. We all had a good time, plus we got to play “The Radio Game” down and back. Who could ask for more!

After the evening service Sunday, our church celebrated Father’s Day by playing “Putt-Putt With Pa”. We all went to Meadow Lake Park and enjoyed pizza and cookies before we started the rigorous game. Kurt, Dad, Kendi (a teen in our church), and I played together and had a good time. Dad made a hole in one at the last hole which earned him a free snow cone. Good job, Dad!